Author: Adrianna Serna

NYS STEPS: What Districts Need to Know

Written by Adrianna Serna on October 13, 2026.

New York school districts are exploring how NYS STEPS can reshape educator evaluation and professional growth. Under Education Law §3012-e, the Standards-based Educator Evaluation and Professional Support system gives districts and BOCES greater flexibility to develop locally designed evaluation processes focused on meaningful feedback, professional learning, and continuous improvement.

While districts have until June 30, 2032, to adopt a STEPS plan, the 2026–27 school year offers an opportunity to review existing practices and prepare for future changes.

How NYS STEPS Is Changing Educator Evaluation

Educator evaluation involves observations, documentation, feedback, and reporting. NYS STEPS encourages districts to connect these responsibilities with a broader approach to professional development.

Under §3012-e, evaluation systems use multiple measures of educator practice aligned with New York State teaching and educational leadership standards.

Districts have greater flexibility in designing aspects of their evaluation plans, including certain evaluation cycles, measures, and rating processes, while following applicable state requirements and collective bargaining agreements.

The goal is to make evaluation information more useful in supporting educators throughout their careers.

Four Questions Districts Should Consider

As districts explore their transition to NYS STEPS, several questions can help guide planning.

1. How Will Evidence Be Collected?

Districts should consider how observations and other evidence of educator practice will be documented, organized, and reviewed.

Clear processes can help administrators and educators better understand evaluation findings and identify opportunities for growth.

2. How Will Feedback Lead to Action?

Meaningful feedback should help educators identify next steps.

Districts can explore how evaluation findings connect with coaching, professional goals, targeted support, and professional learning opportunities.

3. How Will Professional Learning Connect to Evaluation?

NYS STEPS emphasizes the relationship between educator evaluation and professional support.

District leaders can consider how evaluation information may help identify development needs and inform relevant professional learning opportunities.

4. Can Administrators See the Bigger Picture?

Reviewing evaluation information across schools and departments may help district leaders identify trends, common strengths, and opportunities for additional support.

Organized documentation and reporting tools can make this information easier to access and review.

How Technology Can Support NYS STEPS Planning

Locally designed evaluation systems still require organization, consistent documentation, and accessible information.

Depending on their evaluation plans, districts may need to manage observations, evaluation criteria, supporting evidence, professional goals, and professional learning activities across multiple schools.

eDoctrina provides tools for educator evaluation, professional learning, data management, and reporting within one platform.

With customizable evaluation tools and reporting features, eDoctrina can help districts organize their existing processes and explore workflows aligned with their locally developed approaches.

As districts prepare for NYS STEPS, reviewing their current technology can be an important part of the planning process. Districts should assess their specific requirements and determine how available tools can support their evaluation plans.

Preparing for the Transition

The New York State Education Department continues to provide resources to help districts understand and plan for NYS STEPS.

Updated guidance, pre-submission workbooks, and sample plans are available to support local planning efforts.

Although districts have time before the statewide adoption deadline, beginning conversations now can help administrators and educators consider how evaluation, feedback, and professional learning should work together.

The transition offers an opportunity to build evaluation processes that support professional growth, informed decision-making, and instructional improvement.

For official requirements and planning resources, visit NYSED’s STEPS guidance and resources.

Explore Educator Evaluation Tools with eDoctrina

Discover how eDoctrina can help your district organize educator evaluation, professional learning, and reporting with flexible tools designed to support district-specific processes.

By. Dr. Brad Hunter, VP of Operations at Harris Education Solutions

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How Early Warning Systems Help At-Risk Students

Written by Adrianna Serna on September 28, 2026.

Students rarely begin struggling overnight.

A drop in attendance. A change in classroom behavior. Lower assessment scores. Missing assignments. Declining grades.

On their own, these changes may not immediately raise concern. But when educators can see those indicators together, they can reveal an important pattern: a student may need additional support.

That is the real value of an Early Warning System.

An effective Early Warning System helps educators identify at-risk students earlier, understand where support may be needed, and turn student data into meaningful action before small challenges become larger ones.

What Is an Early Warning System in Education?

An Early Warning System, or EWS, brings together key student data so educators can more easily recognize patterns associated with academic difficulty, disengagement, attendance concerns, or behavioral needs.

Rather than requiring teachers and administrators to search through multiple systems, spreadsheets, and reports, an EWS gives teams a clearer view of student performance in one place.

Depending on a district’s goals, early warning indicators may include:

Attendance and absenteeism
Course grades
Formative or benchmark assessments
State assessment results
Behavioral or disciplinary data
Credit accumulation
Changes in academic performance

The goal is not simply to label students as “at risk.”

The goal is to help educators recognize emerging needs early enough to provide meaningful support.

Why Early Identification Matters

School districts already collect a tremendous amount of student data.

The challenge is turning that information into something educators can use quickly.

Without a centralized view, teachers and administrators may spend valuable time collecting, organizing, and interpreting information from several different sources. That takes time away from planning instruction, collaborating with colleagues, and supporting students.

An Early Warning System helps streamline that process.

Instead of asking, “Where is the information?” educators can focus on more important questions:

Which students may need additional support?
What indicators are contributing to that need?
What intervention may be appropriate?
Is the student making progress?
Does the support need to be adjusted?

When educators can answer those questions sooner, schools can respond more proactively.

Early Warning Systems and MTSS

Early identification is especially valuable within a Multi-Tiered System of Support, or MTSS.

MTSS relies on data to help educators determine the appropriate level of academic, behavioral, or other student support.

An Early Warning System can help educators recognize when a student may be moving from universal Tier 1 support toward a need for more targeted Tier 2 or Tier 3 interventions.

With edInsight, districts can use student data to support tiering decisions, automate tiering recommendations based on district or school criteria, and create individual or group intervention plans.

This allows teams to move more efficiently from identifying a concern to deciding what happens next.

What Student Data Should Schools Monitor?

The most useful indicators will vary based on district priorities, grade level, and student population.

Academic Indicators

Academic indicators may include:

Course grades
Reading and mathematics performance
Benchmark or formative assessment results
State assessment scores
Credit accumulation
Significant changes in academic performance

Attendance Indicators

Attendance data may include:

Chronic absenteeism
Unexcused absences
Tardiness
Extended absences
Changes in normal attendance patterns

Behavioral Indicators

Behavioral indicators may include:

Behavioral referrals
Suspensions
Disciplinary incidents
Changes in classroom engagement or participation

Rather than relying on a single data point, educators can look across multiple indicators to develop a more complete picture of a student’s needs.

edInsight’s current Early Warning System can incorporate information such as student absences, misconduct, formative or benchmark assessments, state assessments, and current course grades when calculating at-risk information.

Turning Early Warning Data Into a Student Intervention Plan

Identifying a student who may need support is only the first step.

The real impact comes from what educators do next.

Once a need has been identified, teams can develop a student intervention plan that clearly outlines:

The student’s area of need
The intervention or support being provided
The goal of the intervention
How progress will be measured
The frequency and duration of support
Who is responsible for implementing the intervention
When the team will review the student’s progress

A connected MTSS system makes it easier to keep this information organized and accessible to everyone involved in supporting the student.

edInsight allows educators to create individual or group intervention plans, assign students to programs, monitor progress, track meetings and notes, and review intervention effectiveness.

Progress Monitoring Keeps the Process Moving

An intervention plan should never be the end of the process.

Educators also need to know whether the intervention is working.

Progress monitoring gives teams a way to evaluate student growth over time and determine whether support should continue, change, or become more intensive.

For example, a student may be:

Making progress and ready for less intensive support
Responding well and benefiting from the current intervention
Making limited progress and needing an adjusted strategy
Showing a greater level of need that requires additional support

With consistent progress monitoring, teams can make decisions based on current student performance rather than waiting until the end of a grading period or school year.

Better Data Can Support Better Collaboration

Supporting a student often involves more than one educator.

Teachers, interventionists, counselors, specialists, administrators, and other staff members may all contribute to a student’s success.

When information is spread across different systems or documents, collaboration becomes more difficult.

A centralized Early Warning and MTSS system can help teams work from the same information, including:

Student performance data
Intervention plans
Progress monitoring results
Meeting notes
Alerts
Intervention history

This creates greater visibility across teams and helps educators spend less time searching for information.

What Should Schools Look for in an Early Warning System?

A strong Early Warning System should make student data easier to understand and easier to act on.

Schools and districts should look for a solution that can:

Bring together academic, attendance, assessment, and behavioral data
Identify students who may need additional support
Allow districts to customize early warning criteria
Support MTSS tiering decisions
Create individual and group intervention plans
Monitor student progress over time
Track meetings, notes, and alerts
Support collaboration among educators
Evaluate intervention effectiveness
Provide clear, easy-to-understand reports

Most importantly, the system should simplify the process for educators rather than create more administrative work.

The edInsight Advantage

edInsight brings student data, early warning insights, intervention planning, progress monitoring, and MTSS workflows together in one connected environment.

The edInsight Data Dashboard automatically assembles educational data from multiple sources and allows educators to view information at the student, class, grade, building, district, and custom-group level. It also supports customizable reporting and the identification of at-risk students.

Within edInsight’s MTSS tools, educators can create intervention plans, automate tiering recommendations, monitor student performance, track meetings and alerts, and evaluate how well interventions are working.

The result is a clearer path from data to decision to intervention.

The Real Value Is Earlier Support

The value of an Early Warning System is not simply the amount of data it can collect.

It is what educators can do with that information.

When schools can identify emerging needs earlier, teams have more time to understand what is happening, provide appropriate support, monitor student progress, and adjust interventions when necessary.

That can mean less time searching for information and more time helping students move forward.

See how edInsight can support your district’s MTSS process.

Explore edInsight’s MTSS tools or request a demo to learn how your district can identify student needs earlier, create intervention plans, monitor progress, and bring critical student data together in one place.

By. Aaron Banach, Product Owner

Homeschool Progress Monitoring: Why It Matters for Families

Written by Adrianna Serna on September 21, 2026.

One of the greatest advantages of homeschooling is the freedom to create an educational experience that fits your child’s unique learning style and your family’s goals. Parents can adjust the pace, spend more time on challenging concepts, and explore subjects in greater depth.

Homeschool progress monitoring helps parents understand whether their child is growing academically and where additional support may be needed. With all the flexibility homeschooling provides, many families still ask the same important question:

How do I know my child is making meaningful academic progress?

Daily assignments and completed lessons provide valuable information, but they do not always tell the whole story. Regular benchmark assessments help parents measure academic growth, identify strengths, uncover learning gaps, and make informed instructional decisions throughout the school year.

Tracking Homeschool Progress Throughout the School Year

Academic success is about more than one test score. The most valuable information comes from tracking student progress over time.

By administering benchmark assessments at the beginning, middle, and end of the school year, parents can clearly see how their child is growing. Comparing these checkpoints helps families:

Measure academic progress throughout the year
Identify skills that need additional support
Adjust curriculum or pacing before learning gaps become larger challenges
Celebrate student growth and build confidence
Maintain documentation for portfolios or state reporting requirements when needed

Rather than relying on a single snapshot, parents gain a more complete picture of their child’s learning journey.

Keep Homeschool Assessment Results in One Place

Many homeschool families use multiple educational resources throughout the year. As a result, assessment data can become scattered across spreadsheets, notebooks, online programs, and printed reports.

A centralized assessment platform makes it easier to organize results in one convenient location. When homeschool assessment results are stored together, parents can quickly answer important questions:

Which subjects have shown the most growth?
Which skills still need additional practice?
Is my child progressing at the pace we expected?
Where should we focus instruction next?

Easy access to meaningful data helps parents turn assessment results into practical teaching decisions.

Choose Homeschool Assessments That Align With Your Goals

Every homeschool family approaches education differently. Some follow state academic standards, while others choose classical education, Charlotte Mason, Montessori, unit studies, or eclectic learning models. A flexible assessment platform should support those choices rather than limit them.

For families who want to prepare students for state assessments or measure progress against state expectations, assessments can be aligned with individual state standards. Whether your student is preparing for the New York State Regents Examinations, STAAR in Texas, or another state assessment, standards-aligned benchmarks can help you understand how your child is progressing toward grade-level expectations.

At the same time, parents remain in control of how and when assessments are used. The data serves as a tool to support learning, not dictate instruction.

Create Customized Homeschool Assessments With an Optional Item Bank

Every student has unique strengths and areas for growth. Sometimes, a parent may want to provide additional practice on a single skill rather than administer a complete benchmark assessment.

An optional assessment item bank gives families the flexibility to create customized quizzes, practice tests, and skill checks. Parents can select questions based on specific subjects, academic standards, skills, concepts, or grade levels. This makes it easier to reinforce learning and monitor mastery throughout the year.

Whether students need additional support before moving to the next lesson or a new challenge after mastering a concept, customized homeschool assessments provide targeted practice that meets each learner where they are.

Make Homeschool Teaching Decisions With Confidence

Assessment is not about adding unnecessary testing to the homeschool environment. It is about giving parents reliable information that helps them make confident instructional decisions.

When homeschool families have access to meaningful assessment data, they can:

Personalize instruction based on student needs
Make informed curriculum decisions
Monitor academic growth throughout the year
Identify and address learning gaps
Prepare students for standardized tests and college entrance exams
Support future academic opportunities or transitions into traditional classrooms

The goal is not simply to measure what students know today. It is to understand how they are growing and determine how to best support their continued success.

Frequently Asked Questions About Homeschool Progress Monitoring

What is progress monitoring in homeschooling?

Homeschool progress monitoring is the process of regularly reviewing assessment results, completed work, and skill development to measure a student’s academic growth over time. It helps parents identify strengths, uncover learning gaps, and make informed instructional decisions.

How often should homeschool students take benchmark assessments?

Many homeschool families use benchmark assessments at the beginning, middle, and end of the school year. These checkpoints can establish a starting point, measure progress, and show a student’s overall academic growth.

Can homeschool assessments align with state standards?

Yes. Standards-aligned homeschool assessments can help families understand how a student’s skills compare with grade-level expectations in their state. Parents can decide whether and how state standards fit into their homeschool goals.

Can homeschool parents create their own assessments?

With access to an assessment item bank, parents can create customized quizzes, practice tests, and skill checks based on specific subjects, standards, skills, or grade levels.

Why is progress monitoring important for homeschool students?

Progress monitoring helps families recognize academic growth, identify areas that need additional support, and adjust instruction before small learning gaps become larger challenges. It also gives parents clear information they can use when planning future lessons.

Helping Homeschool Families Thrive

Homeschooling gives families the freedom to create a personalized educational experience. Pairing that flexibility with meaningful progress monitoring provides valuable insight into each student’s academic journey.

With benchmark assessments, centralized reporting, optional state standards alignment, and a customizable assessment item bank, parents can access professional-quality tools while maintaining control over their child’s education.

When families have clear, actionable data, they can make confident decisions, celebrate growth, and help students continue moving toward their academic goals, regardless of where they live or how they choose to homeschool.

Castle Learning supports homeschool families with educational resources designed to strengthen learning, practice, and academic progress. Explore Castle for Home to discover additional ways to support your child’s learning journey.

Explore Castle for Home

About the Authors

Melissa Sperry and Pam Fitzgerald bring decades of combined experience in education, curriculum development, and homeschooling to their work.

Melissa Sperry is an instructional design professional and curriculum specialist who is currently completing the capstone for her Master of Education in Curriculum Development. She spent five years as a classroom teacher, has worked as a private math tutor since 2011, and has developed standards-aligned curriculum, assessments, and digital learning resources for Harris Education’s Tango Software since 2012. Melissa also homeschooled her daughter for three years before transitioning back to public school, giving her firsthand experience with both homeschooling and traditional education.

Pam Fitzgerald spent 15 years teaching writing and homeschooled both of her daughters throughout their K-12 education. With more than 25 years of homeschooling experience, she understands the unique opportunities and challenges families encounter when educating at home. Her daughters, now successful adults, reflect her commitment to personalized, student-centered learning.

Together, Melissa and Pam combine professional expertise with real-world experience to help educators and homeschool families make informed instructional decisions through high-quality curriculum, meaningful assessments, and practical educational resources.

3 students working on laptops in a classroom learning

How the Castle Companion App Came to Life | Castle Learning

Written by Adrianna Serna on September 8, 2026.

For years, Castle Learning has helped educators provide students with meaningful opportunities to practice, review, and strengthen their understanding of important concepts. But learning does not stop when students leave the classroom or complete an assignment.

When students study independently, they may not know where to begin, what material to revisit, or which strategies will actually help them retain what they have learned. Studying can quickly turn into rereading notes, reviewing everything at once, or cramming the night before an assessment.

That challenge led our team to an important question:

How can we help students make effective studying and review a more consistent part of their everyday lives?

That question became the starting point for the Castle Companion App.

“Castle Learning already does a great job supporting the work teachers assign. What we kept hearing about was the other half—what happens when a student sits down alone the night before a test and doesn’t really know where to start. Most students aren’t struggling because they don’t care. They’re struggling because nobody ever taught them how to study. Rebuilding Castle Learning on a phone wouldn’t have touched that. We wanted something that belonged to the student, not something they were assigned.” — Meghan Ricketts, Content Manager

Extending Learning Beyond the Classroom

Castle Companion was created to work alongside Castle Learning and extend the learning experience beyond traditional assignments.

The goal was not simply to recreate Castle Learning inside an app. Our team wanted to build an experience designed specifically for independent study—one that felt approachable, engaging, and easy for students to use whenever they had a few minutes to review.

Rather than expecting students to determine what and how to study on their own, Castle Companion helps guide the review process. Students can revisit concepts, make connections, track their progress, and develop stronger study habits through shorter, more focused practice sessions.

This creates a bridge between the work students complete through Castle Learning and the independent review that helps those concepts stay with them.

Designed Around Better Ways to Study

Every Castle Companion feature was developed with a purpose.

Smart Stack uses spaced repetition to help students revisit content over time instead of reviewing everything at once. Study Match makes review more interactive while reinforcing important concepts. Mind Mapping allows students to organize information visually and understand how ideas connect.

Together, these tools support more than content review. They help students become more active, confident, and independent learners.

“We started from what the research says actually works—recalling information instead of rereading it, testing yourself, and connecting ideas rather than memorizing them in isolation. But we also know students don’t all think the same way. One student needs quick repetition to make facts stick; another needs to see how everything fits together before any of it makes sense. These three tools cover the full arc, from first getting something into your head to really understanding it, and they let students find the approach that fits them.” — Meghan Ricketts, Content Manager

Instead of reading the same material repeatedly and hoping it sinks in, students actively retrieve information, check their understanding, and identify knowledge gaps while they still have time to address them.

Students can study on the go, fit practice into their schedules, and continue making progress between classroom assignments. Educators can feel confident that students have another meaningful way to engage with Castle Learning content outside the classroom—without adding another responsibility to the teacher’s workload.

Built Through Collaboration

Castle Companion may appear as one seamless experience to the student, but bringing it to life required the ideas, expertise, and dedication of people across Harris Education Solutions.

Team members from product development, technology, design, education, customer support, and other areas worked together throughout the process. Each person brought a different perspective to the project.

Some team members understood the technical requirements needed to turn the idea into a working mobile experience. Others brought years of experience supporting Castle Learning educators and understanding how students interact with instructional technology. Feedback, testing, problem-solving, and thoughtful conversations helped move Castle Companion from an early concept to an app students could begin using.

This collaboration mattered because creating an educational app requires more than adding features. Every interaction had to be considered from the student’s perspective:

Is it easy to understand?
Does it encourage the student to continue?
Does it make studying feel manageable?
Does it help the student recognize their progress?

Those questions kept the team focused on creating something genuinely useful—not simply something new.

“Every improvement we make ultimately has to answer one question: Does this help students learn better? The Castle Companion App was built with students at the center, making it easier for them to build good habits and take ownership of their own progress. It’s a meaningful step forward in making Castle Learning even more student friendly.” — Dr. Brad Hunter, VP of Operations

Why This Work Matters to Us

We are passionate about Castle Companion because we believe students deserve tools that help them feel capable of taking the next step in their learning.

Independent study can be challenging, especially when students do not know what to review or feel overwhelmed by the amount of material in front of them. Teachers are already stretched covering required content, which means there is not always enough time during the school day to teach students how to study effectively.

Castle Companion supports students beyond the classroom without placing one more task on a teacher’s plate.

“Kids get handed plenty of tools for doing schoolwork, but almost nothing for the part that happens on their own—after school, the night before a test, when no one is checking in. The app treats studying as a skill a student can own, not another task assigned to them. Phones are already in their hands every day, so meeting them there felt obvious rather than clever. Castle Companion is about giving kids independence in the one part of learning that’s genuinely theirs.” — Danielle Cox, Education Solution Consultant

The right support can make studying feel more manageable and help students recognize that progress is built through small, consistent efforts. Castle Companion gives students a place to practice, explore, and strengthen their understanding at their own pace.

Most importantly, it can help transform studying from something students feel they have to do into something they know how to navigate.

A New Chapter for Castle Learning

The launch of Castle Companion represents more than the introduction of a new app. It is another step in the continued evolution of Castle Learning and our commitment to supporting students wherever learning takes place.

We are proud of what our team has created, grateful to everyone who contributed along the way, and excited to see how educators and students use Castle Companion to extend learning beyond the classroom.

Meaningful success, however, will not be measured only by downloads or usage numbers.

“Success is a student walking into a test knowing they’re ready. Not hoping, not cramming the night before—actually prepared, because they had a way to get there on their own. Numbers can tell me an app was opened; they can’t tell me a kid felt steady instead of anxious. If students come away more confident in their own ability to prepare, the app has done its job.” — Danielle Cox, Education Solution Consultant

As students and educators explore the app, their experiences and feedback will continue to shape its future. Castle Companion began with a question about how we could help students study more effectively. Its next chapter will be written with the educators and learners who put it into practice.

Current Castle Learning customers are eligible to participate in a complimentary Castle Companion trial during the 2026–27 school year.

Ready to discover a new way to extend learning, strengthen review, and support independent study?

By Mary Beth St. Dennis, Product Success Manager

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Top 5 Features Every K-12 Universal Screener Should Have

Written by Adrianna Serna on August 17, 2026.

Choosing a universal screener can seem pretty straightforward at first. Districts need a way to assess students a few times throughout the year, identify where additional support may be needed, and give teachers data they can use to make informed instructional decisions.

But once you start looking more closely, there’s a lot more to consider:

Can teachers understand and act on the results?
Does the screener support your RTI or MTSS process?
Can it help monitor student growth over time?
Does it address specific district or state needs, such as dyslexia screening, early childhood readiness, or bilingual assessment?

Over the years, we’ve seen that the districts getting the most value from universal screening are rarely focused on the assessment alone. They are thinking about what happens after students complete it.

The real question becomes: What can our educators do with the information we receive?

As districts evaluate universal screening tools, here are five areas I believe are especially important to consider.

1. Make Sure the Data Means Something to Teachers

A universal screener should do more than tell educators whether a student scored high, low, or somewhere in between. Teachers need to understand what that result means for instruction. One of the most important things to look for is transparency. Can educators easily see where students are performing, where gaps may exist, and what those results mean in terms they already understand?

The easier the data is to interpret, the easier it becomes to turn assessment results into meaningful classroom decisions.

With LION, for example, reading results can be connected to familiar frameworks such as Lexile, Fountas & Pinnell, DRA2, and Reading A-Z. Rather than asking educators to learn an entirely new way of interpreting student performance, the goal is to connect assessment information with tools and language they may already use.

A score is useful. Understanding what to do with that score is much more valuable.

2. Look Beyond a One Size Fits All Approach

Every district has different students, different priorities, and different requirements. Sometimes those needs are very specific.

A district may need a dyslexia screener that supports its screening process. Another may be focused on kindergarten readiness. Others may need assessments available in both English and Spanish. Those needs deserve more than a workaround.

When evaluating a universal screening solution, I encourage districts to look at whether the tools were actually designed for the populations and purposes they are expected to support.

Within LION, that includes solutions such as the LION Dyslexia Screener, a stand-alone K-8 tool aligned with International Dyslexia Association risk factors and principles of Structured Literacy, as well as LION for Prekindergarten, which is included on the Texas Education Agency Commissioner’s List of Progress Monitoring Instruments.

The important takeaway is not that every district needs every tool. It is that your assessment system should be flexible enough to support the needs that matter to your students.

3. Ask What Happens After the Assessment

This may be one of the most important questions a district can ask. A student completes the screener. The teacher receives the results. Then what?

The best assessment processes give teachers a clear starting point for what comes next. That might mean identifying a skill that needs additional attention, planning small group instruction, selecting an intervention, or finding additional practice opportunities for a student.

Universal screening should help inform instruction, not replace a teacher’s professional judgment. That is why LION connects assessment results with instructional resources such as lesson plans, small group activities, intervention measures, and interactive student practice.

The goal is to give educators useful information and practical resources while keeping teachers at the center of the instructional decision-making process.

4. Make Progress Monitoring Part of the Process

Universal screening is most valuable when districts can see more than a snapshot. A screening window can tell you where a student is today. Looking across multiple screening, windows can begin to tell you something even more important: whether that student is growing.

That becomes especially valuable within an RTI or MTSS process. District leaders should be able to see which students may need additional support, how students are progressing over time, and whether interventions are having the intended impact.

LION provides grade level status, RTI tier information, and a LION Index scale score benchmarked to national norms, along with longitudinal reporting designed to help educators follow student progress from one assessment window to the next.

The goal is to make progress monitoring an ongoing part of supporting students rather than something districts have to piece together at the end of the year.

5. Think About the Bigger K-12 Picture

It is easy to evaluate an assessment tool based on one immediate need. Maybe the district is looking for a reading screener today. Maybe math is the priority next year. Maybe another department is already looking at science or early childhood assessments.

Before long, districts can find themselves juggling multiple platforms, separate reporting systems, and different ways of measuring student performance. That is why I encourage district leaders to step back and look at the bigger picture.

Can the system grow with your district?
Can it support multiple grades and subjects?
Can educators access information in a consistent way?
Can it serve students who need assessment options in another language?

LION and LEON support reading from kindergarten through grade 12, math through Algebra I, science through biology, and prekindergarten readiness, with assessment options available in English and Spanish.

Having more of that information connected can make it easier for districts to understand student performance across grade levels, classrooms, and subject areas.

Bringing It All Together

If there is one thought I would leave you with, it is this: a universal screener should not simply tell you which students need support. It should help your educators understand where support is needed, how students are progressing, and what they can do next.

The strongest screening processes connect assessment, instruction, intervention, and progress monitoring rather than treating each one as a separate task. That is exactly what we have worked to build with Tango Software and LION.

Our goal is not to give districts another assessment just for the sake of collecting more data. It is to help educators make that data easier to understand, easier to use, and more connected to the decisions they are already making every day.

When districts have clearer information about student needs, teachers can spend less time trying to interpret assessment results and more time deciding how best to support the students in front of them.

Let’s Keep the Conversation Going

Every district approaches universal screening a little differently, and there is no single assessment strategy that works exactly the same way everywhere.

If your district is reviewing its current universal screener, strengthening its RTI or MTSS process, exploring dyslexia or early childhood screening options, or simply looking for better ways to turn assessment data into instructional action, we’re always happy to share what we’ve learned.

Whether you are looking for advice, comparing approaches, or wondering how technology can help create a more connected assessment process, our team is here to help.

If and when you’re ready, we’d be glad to start the conversation and show you how Tango Software and LION can support a more connected approach to universal screening, progress monitoring, and student growth.

Talk to Our Team

By. Vanessa Ragsdale

Vanessa is an Education Solutions Consultant for Harris Education Solutions with 20 years of experience in education. She began her career as an elementary reading and writing teacher, spending three years in the classroom before moving into secondary education: five years teaching junior high social studies, two years teaching junior high reading and writing, and a decade as a junior high librarian. That range across grade levels, subjects, and roles gives her a firsthand understanding of how instruction, literacy, and daily school operations fit together. Today, Vanessa partners with school and district leaders to deliver tailored solutions that support student success, data-informed decision-making, and operational efficiency.

5 Tips for Building a Stronger Educator Evaluation Process

Written by Adrianna Serna on August 6, 2026.

Over the years, I’ve had the opportunity to work alongside district leaders from all types of school systems. While every district has its own priorities and its own way of doing things, I’ve noticed something interesting. The districts with the strongest educator evaluation processes rarely have the most complicated systems. Instead, they have a clear purpose, consistent expectations, and leaders who never lose sight of why educator evaluations matter in the first place.

For many New York school districts, educator evaluations are managed through locally negotiated APPR processes associated with New York Education Law 3012-e. Every district approaches those processes a little differently, and that’s exactly how it should be. My goal isn’t to tell you how your district should conduct evaluations or interpret state requirements. Instead, I’d like to share a few ideas that I’ve seen make a meaningful difference for district leaders who want their evaluation process to support educators, not slow them down.

1. Remember What the Evaluation Is Really About

It sounds simple, but it’s surprisingly easy to lose sight of the purpose. When calendars get full, observations stack up, and documentation starts piling up, the conversation can shift from helping teachers grow to simply getting everything completed. Whenever that happens, I encourage leaders to pause and ask one question.

“How does this help the educator standing in front of students tomorrow?”

If the answer isn’t clear, it may be worth rethinking the process. The paperwork matters, but the real value of an evaluation has always been the conversation it creates and the growth that follows.

2. Make Consistency Easy

One of the best gifts you can give your administrators is clarity.

Your principals shouldn’t have to wonder if they’re using the right form or whether another school is following a completely different process. Teachers shouldn’t feel like their experience depends on which building they’re assigned to.

Consistency doesn’t mean everyone leads exactly the same way. Great leaders bring their own personalities and coaching styles to every conversation. Consistency simply means everyone understands the expectations, the process, and the goal.

When that happens, trust grows naturally.

3. Don’t Wait Until Spring to Organize Everything

I’ve seen districts do incredible work all year long only to spend weeks trying to pull everything together at the end.

Observation notes are in one place. Supporting evidence is somewhere else. Someone remembers an important conversation but can’t remember where it was documented.

None of that happens because people aren’t working hard. It happens because educators are busy.

The districts that seem to manage evaluations with the least amount of stress are usually the ones that build organization into the process from the very beginning instead of trying to recreate it later.

4. Let Feedback Lead Somewhere

One of my favorite questions to ask after an observation is, “What’s next?”

Too often, an evaluation ends when the form is completed. I think that’s a missed opportunity. The most meaningful evaluations create momentum. They lead to coaching conversations, professional learning, collaboration, and new ideas that educators can take back into their classrooms.

When feedback becomes the beginning of the conversation instead of the end, evaluations become far more valuable.

5. Step Back and Look for the Bigger Story

It’s easy to focus on one observation, one teacher, or one school. District leadership requires a wider view.

What patterns are emerging across your schools?
What strengths are showing up again and again?
Where are your teachers asking for support?

Those answers often tell a much more important story than any single evaluation ever could. They also help district leaders make thoughtful decisions about coaching, professional learning, and future priorities.

Bringing It All Together

If there’s one thought I’d leave you with, it’s this. An effective educator evaluation process shouldn’t feel like something you have to survive every year. It should become one of your strongest tools for supporting teachers and improving instruction.

For New York school districts managing locally negotiated APPR processes associated with New York Education Law 3012 e, that often starts with having systems that make the work easier to manage. When observations, documentation, evidence, professional learning, and reporting are organized in one place, administrators spend less time chasing paperwork and more time doing the work that matters most.

That’s exactly why we built eDoctrina.

Our goal has never been to change the way districts support educators. It’s to help make that work more organized, more connected, and more sustainable so your leaders can spend their time where it has the greatest impact: supporting teachers and helping students succeed.

Let’s Keep the Conversation Going

Every district’s journey is different, and there is no one size fits all approach to supporting educators.

If your district is looking for ideas to strengthen its educator evaluation process, simplify day to day workflows, or create more meaningful opportunities for professional growth, we’re always happy to share what we’ve learned.

Whether you’re looking for advice, exploring new approaches, or wondering how technology can support your locally developed APPR process, our team is here to help. If and when you’re ready, we’d be glad to start the conversation and show you how eDoctrina supports districts in building more organized, efficient, and growth focused educator evaluation processes.

Contact us today or request a personalized demo. We’d love to learn more about your district and how we can help.

By. Dr. Brad Hunter, VP of Operations

eDoctrina’s Core Performance Management Software Officially Launches in Baltimore City Schools

Written by Adrianna Serna on July 30, 2026.

Baltimore, MD – October 2024 –eDoctrina is proud to announce the official launch of its Core Performance Management software for Baltimore City Schools. This milestone follows a year-long collaborative effort to implement eDoctrina’s comprehensive suite of educational tools. The platform supports performance management, assessments, professional development, and data analytics across the district.

A Strong Partnership for Districtwide Success

In November 2023, Baltimore City Schools entered a three-year contract with eDoctrina to implement its Core Performance Management suite. The implementation includes the OBSeRVE Module, SLO tool, student goals, educator effectiveness forms, improvement plans, the Assessment bundle, PD30 module, reporting and analytics tools, and other services.

This partnership reflects a shared commitment to improving educational outcomes through data-driven insights and streamlined performance management.

From Implementation to Launch

Since the start of the partnership, eDoctrina’s team has dedicated more than 3,900 hours to the project. This work included software development, configuration, project management, and support documentation.

The commitment and collaboration of both teams resulted in a smooth implementation. The system officially went live on September 9, 2024.

“This launch is a significant achievement for both eDoctrina and Baltimore City Schools,” said Diva Mayeau, HES EVP. “The commitment, discipline, and focus demonstrated by everyone involved is a testament to the power of teamwork and shared vision. We’re thrilled to see this system live and operational and look forward to building on this momentum to further support City Schools in achieving their educational goals.”

Looking Ahead

With the eDoctrina system now fully operational, both teams look forward to continuing their collaboration. Together, they will leverage the platform’s capabilities to empower Baltimore educators and support student success across the district.

About eDoctrina

eDoctrina is a leading provider of education technology solutions. The company specializes in performance management, assessment, and analytics tools that help educators and administrators achieve measurable outcomes. eDoctrina delivers innovative software and services that support growth, accountability, and student success.

Join districts like Baltimore City Schools that are improving performance management with eDoctrina. See the platform in action with a personalized demo.

Request a Demo

Transforming Professional Learning at PGCPS with eDoctrina

Written by Adrianna Serna on July 30, 2026.

Prince George’s County Public Schools (PGCPS) partnered with eDoctrina to elevate and transform their professional learning (PL) experience. The goal was to centralize and track professional development across the district, from onboarding to licensure, while improving the user experience and data management. As the Professional Learning Hub for the district, eDoctrina has supported the district’s goals of having a submission and approval process at both the office and district level in order to track and streamline professional learning offerings to all staff work groups.

Features & Functionality

Innovative features and robust functionalities built in eDoctrina have significantly impacted the way PGCPS monitors and engages in professional learning. eDoctrina’s feature-rich platform has been pivotal in achieving these goals. Notable features include:

Blackout Calendar and Catalog Release Date Calendar: Prevents conflicts and streamlines scheduling.
Do Not Release: This feature has been valuable to those hosting PL sessions for specific audiences, allowing them to keep the sessions private and out of general search results.
Bulk Approval and Attendance: These functionalities have streamlined administrative processes and helped improve efficiency.
Reporting and Data Export: Supports data-driven decision-making.
Learner Dashboard: Enhances user experience and engagement.
Canvas Integration: Seamless integration with Canvas has boosted the use of self-paced courses, expanding access to professional learning.
External Learner Registration: Opens learning opportunities to non-PGCPS staff such as parents, pre-service candidates, interns, and more.
Self Check-In: Provides easy attendance tracking by empowering the participants to mark themselves attended by scanning a QR code and entering a 4-digit code provided by the instructor.

Administrative and support staff who are responsible for managing professional learning have benefited greatly from the above mentioned features. Bulk import of attendance, rosters, and approval capabilities, along with comprehensive reporting tools, have streamlined workflows and reduced administrative burdens. The platform’s approval workflow and customizable reports have enhanced productivity, allowing staff to focus more on supporting learners. Another notable achievement has been the increased use of Canvas for self-paced courses, providing learners with convenient access to a wealth of content.

Productivity & Engagement

eDoctrina has increased employee engagement and satisfaction across the district. More central office departments (Transportation, Operations, Food Services, etc.) now utilize the platform to advertise and track professional learning and mandatory training, supporting PGCPS’s goal of having PL accessible for all staff. The platform also tracks key metrics such as learner participation, CPD credits, and course completion. This data supports grant reporting, strategic planning, and monitoring success indicators. Overall, eDoctrina has transformed PGCPS’s approach to professional learning, creating a streamlined and effective system that supports data-driven decisions and continuous improvement.

5 Ways Teachers Can Use Assessment Data Before the New School Year

Written by Adrianna Serna on July 28, 2026.

The weeks before students return are some of the most valuable for instructional planning. While classroom walls are being decorated and lesson plans are taking shape, one resource often gets overlooked until after school starts: assessment data.

Instead of waiting for the first benchmark or quiz, teachers can use the data they already have to enter the new school year with a clearer understanding of where students are likely to need support. Even a few hours spent reviewing past performance can lead to more targeted instruction, stronger interventions, and greater confidence on the first day of school.

Here are five ways teachers can put assessment data to work before students even walk through the door.

1. Identify Learning Gaps Before They Become Learning Obstacles

Assessment results from the previous school year provide valuable insight into the concepts students mastered and the skills that may need additional attention.

Rather than reviewing every standard equally, focus on recurring areas of difficulty. If multiple students struggled with fractions, informational text, or scientific reasoning, those concepts can be intentionally woven into early lessons and review activities.

Starting with data helps teachers prioritize what matters most instead of relying on assumptions.

2. Group Students for Targeted Support

Student groups rarely need to wait until new assessments are given.

Using historical assessment data allows teachers to begin thinking about flexible instructional groups before the school year begins. While these groups will certainly evolve as new data is collected, having an initial plan makes it easier to differentiate instruction from the very beginning.

Whether it’s small group reading instruction, math intervention, or enrichment opportunities, early planning saves valuable instructional time once school is underway.

3. Set Meaningful Goals for Student Growth

Beginning the year with clear goals creates a stronger sense of purpose for both teachers and students.

Past assessment data can help establish realistic growth targets based on each student’s starting point. Instead of focusing only on end-of-year achievement, teachers can create milestones that celebrate progress throughout the year.

When goals are data-informed, it’s easier to monitor growth, adjust instruction, and recognize successes along the way.

4. Plan Review Activities That Matter

Back-to-school review doesn’t have to be one-size-fits-all.

Assessment data helps teachers identify which concepts truly need reinforcement and which skills students have already mastered. This allows review lessons to be more intentional, reducing unnecessary repetition while dedicating more time to areas where students need additional practice.

Targeted review helps students rebuild confidence while preparing them for new learning.

5. Prepare for Data-Informed Conversations

The first few weeks of school often include conversations with administrators, intervention teams, and families about student needs.

Reviewing assessment data ahead of time allows teachers to enter those discussions with confidence. Instead of relying on general observations, educators can reference specific performance trends, strengths, and areas for growth.

Having a clear understanding of the data also makes it easier to explain instructional decisions and collaborate on strategies that support student success throughout the year.

Turn Assessment Data into Action

Assessment data is most valuable when it leads to meaningful instructional decisions. Reviewing student performance before the school year begins helps teachers start with a plan instead of starting from scratch.

Tools like Castle Learning make this process even easier by providing educators with actionable assessment data alongside a large library of standards-aligned practice questions, assignments, quizzes, and formative assessments. Teachers can quickly identify learning gaps, create targeted practice opportunities, and monitor student progress throughout the school year—all from one platform.

When teachers begin the year with both data and the right instructional resources, they’re better prepared to meet students where they are and help them reach where they’re capable of going.

Ready to Learn More?

Discover how Castle Learning helps teachers transform assessment data into meaningful instruction with standards-aligned practice, instant feedback, and actionable reporting.

Schedule a Demo

By Danielle Cox

Danielle is a New York State Education Solutions Consultant for Harris Education Solutions, bringing more than 28 years of experience in education. Prior to joining HES, Danielle served as a classroom teacher, reading specialist, and school administrator. She now partners with school and district leaders to deliver tailored solutions that support student success, data-informed decision-making, and operational efficiency.